US Police criticized for slow response to violent demonstrations

07:25 13 august 2017

07:25 13 august 2017 Source:
The Boston Globe

Police: Washington having least violent summer in 10 years

The police chief in the nation's capital says Washington is seeing its most peaceful summer in a decade.News outlets report Metropolitan Police Chief Peter Newsham says a comparison of the last 30 days to the same period in 2016 shows the city is seeing its lowest number of violent crimes in 10 years.&nbsp;News outlets report Metropolitan Police Chief Peter Newsham says a comparison of the last 30 days to the same period in 2016 shows the city is seeing its lowest number of violent crimes in 10 years. He announced the decrease during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia’s House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police . Police say a helicopter has crashed near Charlottesville, Virginia, where violent clashes erupted at the site of a white nationalist rally.

David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police . He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration "and it might have been that they were waiting for a more effective time to get people out"of the park.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Police in Charlottesville, Virginia, came under criticism for failing to keep apart warring white nationalists and counter-protesters who battled it out in the city streets on Saturday amid what at first seemed an anemic response from authorities.

Anger over the how police responded came from all directions and intensified after the deaths of a woman struck by a car that plowed into a group of counter protesters. Experts said police appeared outnumbered, ill-prepared and inexperienced.

One group loved Trump’s remarks about Charlottesville: White supremacists

"No condemnation at all” from the president, a neo-Nazi website wrote.But Trump’s choice of words — and the silence that preceded them — are being cheered by at least a few groups of people: neo-Nazis and white nationalists.

Local and state authorities declined to address specific questions about how the demonstration was handled or their strategy for the day. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police .

David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police . Asked why police did not intervene sooner, Toscano said he could not comment. He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration "and it might have been

‘‘The worst part is that people got hurt and the police stood by and didn’t do a godd---- thing,’’ said David Copper, 70, of Staunton, Va., after an initial morning melee at a park that when unchecked by police for several minutes.

Fourteen people were injured in clashes; nine others were hurt in the car crash. Later, two Virginia State Police troopers were killed when their helicopter smashed into trees at the edge of town and burst into flames. The loss of police officers only compounded the calamity on a day that pushed police, city officials and residents to their limits.

Cable news replayed a seemingly endless loop of the early violence at Emancipation Park, where police in riot gear had surrounded the expanse on three sides, though seemed to watch as groups beat each other with sticks and bludgeoned one another with shields. Many on both sides came dressed for battle, with helmets and chemical irritants.

Pence defends Trump response to Charlottesville violence

Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday condemned white supremacists and defended President Trump following criticism that the administration failed to adequately condemn specific groups after Saturday violence in Charlottesville, Virginia."Trump had neglected to name the groups that organized the rally that turned violent in Charlottesville the previous day.

Police in Charlottesville came under criticism for failing to keep apart warring white nationalists and counterprotesters who battled it out in the city streets Saturday amid what at first seemed an anemic response from authorities.

Local and state authorities declined to address specific questions about how the demonstration was handled or their strategy for the day. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police .

Police appeared at one point to retreat and then watch the beatings before eventually moving in to end the free-for-all, make arrests and tend the injured. The governor declared a state of emergency around 11 a.m. and activated the National Guard.

‘‘The whole point is to have overwhelming force so that people don’t get the idea they can do these kinds of things and get away with it,’’ said Charles Ramsey, who headed both the District of Columbia and Philadelphia police departments. Demonstrators and counter demonstrators ‘‘need to be in sight and sound of each other but somebody has to be in between,’’ he said. ‘‘That’s usually the police.’’

Complicating the dynamics was the fact that several dozen groups of armed militia - men in full camouflage toting assault-style weapons - were in the middle of the crowds. Some claimed that they were there to keep the peace, although none were seen trying to stop the skirmishes.

Experts: Police response inadequate at Charlottesville rally

<p>A Virginia police chief said Monday that he "absolutely has regrets" about violence that erupted over the weekend when dozens of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klan members clashed with counterprotesters.</p>As the world watched pandemonium in Charlottesville unfold live on television Saturday, officers seemed to stand on the sidelines as fists flew, bats swung and objects soared through the air.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Police in Charlottesville, Virginia, came under criticism for failing to keep apart warring white nationalists and counter-protesters who battled it out in the city streets on Saturday amid what at first seemed an anemic response from authorities.

Trump considering military response to Venezuela. Play Video. Asked why police did not intervene sooner, Toscano said he could not comment. He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration "and it might have been that they were waiting for a more effective time to get people

Cornel West, the Princeton professor and writer who attended a morning church service at First Baptist Church in Charlottesville with a large group of clergy members, said ‘‘the police didn’t do anything in terms of protecting the people of the community, the clergy.’’ West said that ‘‘if it hadn’t been for the anti fascists protecting us from the neo-fascists, we would have been crushed like cockroaches.’’

Richard Spencer, the white nationalist and one of the leaders of the rally, said police failed to protect groups with which he is affiliated. ‘‘We came here as a demonstration of our movement,’’ Spencer said. ‘‘And we were effectively thrown to the wolves.’’ The police, he said, ‘‘did not protect us.’’

Rescue personnel help an injured woman after a car ran into a large group of protesters after an white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. The nationalists were holding the rally to protest plans by the city of Charlottesville to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. There were several hundred protesters marching in a long line when the car drove into a group of them.

People fly into the air as a vehicle drives into a group of protesters demonstrating against a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. The nationalists were holding the rally to protest plans by the city of Charlottesville to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. There were several hundred protesters marching in a long line when the car drove into a group of them. (Ryan M. Kelly/The Daily Progress via AP)

They relish in punching Nazis. They protest in all black. And they've vowed to physically confront racists and extremists across the country. Debt Escape Plan: Pay No Interest Until 2019 Do You Qualify? Sponsored by CompareCards But who exactly are the protesters that violently clashed with white nationalists in Charlottesville, Virginia?During a combative press conference Tuesday, President Donald Trump dubbed the anti-racist protest groups the "alt-left" and blamed "both sides" for the violent clashes that resulted in the death of Heather Heyer, a 32-year-old peaceful demonstrator, and injured more

prepared or too slow to get involved when the demonstration quickly turned violent in a clash with a larger police in Anaheim, California, were criticized for not doing enough after three people were × Recommended For You Powered by Sailthru. California police panned for slow response to

People receive first-aid after a car ran into a crowd of protesters in Charlottesville, VA on August 12, 2017. A picturesque Virginia city braced Saturday for a flood of white nationalist demonstrators as well as counter-protesters, declaring a local emergency as law enforcement attempted to quell early violent clashes. / AFP PHOTO / PAUL J. RICHARDS (Photo credit should read PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images)

Rescue personnel help injured people after a car ran into a large group of protesters after a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. The nationalists were holding the rally to protest plans by the city of Charlottesville to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. There were several hundred protesters marching in a long line when the car drove into a group of them. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

CHARLOTTESVILLE, USA - August 12: Police, medical personnel, and other protestors attend to the injured people after a car rammed into a crowd of anti-White Supremacy protestors in Charlottesville, Va., USA on August 12, 2017. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

CHARLOTTESVILLE, USA - August 12: A White Supremacist tries to strike a counter protestor with a White Nationalist flag during clashes at Emancipation Park where the White Nationalists are protesting the removal of the Robert E. Lee monument in Charlottesville, Va., USA on August 12, 2017. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

James Alex Fields Jr., 20, is seen in a mugshot released by Charlottesville, Virginia police department after being charged with one count of second degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding and one count of failing to stop at an accident that resulted in a death after police say he drove a car into a crowd of counter protesters during the "Unite the Right" protests by white nationalist and "alt-right" demonstrators in Charlottesville, Virginia on Aug.12.

Cities Face a High Bar to Stop Hate Groups from Marching

After Charlottesville, officials might not want far-right protesters in their cities. But stopping them isn't easy.After the eruption of violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday, extreme right-wing groups are planning to proceed with marches in Boston, California, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia in the coming weeks.

(AP) – University of California, Berkeley police took a hands-off approach to protesters on the campus last week when violent rioters caused chaos when they overtook a But that response by campus officers is being questioned amid widening political polarization and increasingly hostile demonstrators .

That makes it unlike a Ku Klux Klan rally in February where police in Anaheim, California, were criticized for not doing enough after three people were stabbed and several others injured. Granada said the two sides seemed intent on a violent confrontation no matter what police did.

Virginia State Police cordon off an area around the site where a car ran into a group of protesters after a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

White nationalist demonstrators clash with a counter demonstrator by throwing a newspaper box in Lee Park in Charlottesville, Va., on Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. Gov. Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency and police dressed in riot gear ordered people to disperse after chaotic, violent clashes.

Virginia State Police use pepper spray as they move in to clear a clash between members of white nationalist protesters against a group of counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 12, 2017.

A white supremacist with one lens knocked out of his sunglasses holds up a shield during clashes with counter protestors at Emancipation Park where the White Nationalists are protesting the removal of the Robert E. Lee monument in Charlottesville, Va., on August 12, 2017.

Battle lines form between white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the "alt-right" and anti-fascist counter-protesters at the entrance to Lee Park during the "Unite the Right" rally on August 12, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the "alt-right" march down East Market Street toward Lee Park during the "Unite the Right" rally on August 12, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia.

White supremacists march through the University of Virginia Campus with torches.

Virginia governor halts demonstrations at Richmond's Lee monument

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) signed an executive order Friday temporarily halting demonstrations at the Robert E. Lee Monument in Richmond, Va. until the state can implement new safety regulations.The decision comes less than a week after violence erupted in Charlottesville, Va., as white nationalist and neo-Nazi groups gathered in the college town to protest the removal of a statue of Lee, a Confederate general. One person was killed and 19 others were injured when a car plowed through a crowd of counterprotesters, who had turned out to oppose the white nationalist groups.

The United States condemns the "excessive use of force" by Kenya's security services during a demonstration against the electoral oversight body, the embassy in Nairobi said Tuesday. Police beat some demonstrators with batons and kicked others Monday after firing tear gas and water cannon to

blog 'nickhallett.blogdetik.com' is not exists. Aggression and violent media

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Local and state authorities declined to address specific questions about how the demonstration was handled or their strategy for the day. The city’s mayor, police chief, city manager, and Gov. Terry McAuliffe also did not answer questions at an early evening news conference.

Thomas, the police chief, said only that the city will be ‘‘reviewing events of the day over coming weeks and months.’’

McAuliffe thanked law enforcement and noted that ‘‘this could have been a much worse day today.’’ He put the blame squarely on the white nationalists ‘‘who came here to hurt people.’’ He added, without mentioning a specific incident, ‘‘And you did hurt people.’’

Lt. Joseph Hatter, a commander with the Charlottesville Police, said officers tried to create separate areas for protesters and counter protesters to ‘‘reduce the violence.’’ But, he conceded, ‘‘It didn’t work, did it? I think there was a plan to have them separated. They didn’t want to be separated.’’

About the apparent delay in reacting to the violence, Hatter said, ‘‘I don’t know that we did wait. I think we did the best we could under the circumstances.’’ He declined to elaborate.

State Del. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia’s House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police.

‘‘Things were getting out of hand in the skirmishes between the alt-right and what I would describe as the outside agitators who wanted to encourage violence,’’ he said.

Asked why police did not intervene sooner, Toscano said he could not comment. He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration ‘‘and it might have been that they were waiting for a more effective time to get people out”of the park.

Experts on handling large demonstrations said authorities in Charlottesville are likely not as prepared for such events, which occur with more regularity in cities such as New York and Washington. They also said that separating antagonists is paramount.

‘‘Big cities handle this stuff all the time,’’ said Eugene O’Donnell, a former police officer and prosecutor in New York City. ‘‘It seems an enormous stretch for Charlottesville and even for the state police.’’

O’Donnell, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, said that ‘‘planning on paper can vaporize pretty quickly’’ and ‘‘many police think that if you do nothing, it’s less bad than if you do something. ... Police departments need learn to strike a balance and create safe zones for people preaching hate.’’

But he also said that too often the police are faulted for the poor choices of others.

‘‘When people run amok and cause damage, people blame the police,’’ O’Donnell said. ‘‘When police act proactively, they get blamed for overreaching. People ask, ‘Why weren’t you more patient’?’’

Idaho state rep shares conspiracy theory accusing Obama of staging Charlottesville .
An Idaho state lawmaker is facing backlash for sharing a conspiracy theory that former President Obama helped to orchestrate the violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., as part of a plot to take down President Trump. Idaho Rep. Bryan Zollinger on Friday posted a story on Facebook that suggested Obama and other top Democrats like billionaire George Soros and Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe were part of a conspiracy to set up the rally, the Post Register reported. "I'm not saying it is true, but I am suggesting that it is completely plausible," Zollinger wrote on Facebook.

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David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia’s House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police . Police say a helicopter has crashed near Charlottesville, Virginia, where violent clashes erupted at the site of a white nationalist rally.

David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police . He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration "and it might have been that they were waiting for a more effective time to get people out"of the park.

Local and state authorities declined to address specific questions about how the demonstration was handled or their strategy for the day. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police .

David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police . Asked why police did not intervene sooner, Toscano said he could not comment. He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration "and it might have been

Police in Charlottesville came under criticism for failing to keep apart warring white nationalists and counterprotesters who battled it out in the city streets Saturday amid what at first seemed an anemic response from authorities.

Local and state authorities declined to address specific questions about how the demonstration was handled or their strategy for the day. David Toscano, D-Charlottesville, minority leader of Virginia's House, praised the response by Charlottesville and state police .

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Police in Charlottesville, Virginia, came under criticism for failing to keep apart warring white nationalists and counter-protesters who battled it out in the city streets on Saturday amid what at first seemed an anemic response from authorities.

Trump considering military response to Venezuela. Play Video. Asked why police did not intervene sooner, Toscano said he could not comment. He said they trained hard to prepare for the demonstration "and it might have been that they were waiting for a more effective time to get people

prepared or too slow to get involved when the demonstration quickly turned violent in a clash with a larger police in Anaheim, California, were criticized for not doing enough after three people were × Recommended For You Powered by Sailthru. California police panned for slow response to

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